In Amos 3:3, the prophet asks the question, “Shall two walk together unless they are agreed?” The idea is that you cannot walk with someone unless you are going in the same direction. Another perspective is that if we are in agreement with someone, we are walking with that person in one form or another. In addition, if we come into agreement with someone, we may well grant them influence or even authority over us.
For instance, if an abusive parent finally convinces a child that he or she is weak and worthless, and the child has come into agreement with their evaluation, that agreement will rule that child’s life for years to come. The parent’s evaluation will continue to control the child even into his or her adult years. When Adam and Eve came into agreement with Satan’s view of God in the Garden, they submitted their “worldview“ to him. Once they submitted, he was able to continue to direct their steps because he directed their view of reality.
We keep encountering believers whose lives are in shambles because they have come into agreement with Satan in significant parts of their beliefs. Although they believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died for their sins, they do not agree with God in other significant issues. Sometimes they know what God says about a matter but continue in the sin because it gives them pleasure. That is simple rebellion. If we live in rebellion we are certainly walking with Satan.
Others simply decide they can’t help themselves, continue to sin, and hope to cash in on God’s grace. To believe we “cannot help ourselves” is also a belief that God cannot help us or won’t help us. That is simple unbelief that denies the character and the word of God. Satan constantly whispers that God will not or cannot provide for us, protect us, or deliver us. He whispers that God is always angry and displeased with us like an abusive father. If God delays an answer to prayer, the enemy whispers that the answer will never come because God cannot be counted on. He constantly reminds us of our failures and weaknesses and paints us as defective people unworthy of God’s love, God’s blessings, or God’s use of us in significant ways. The question is whether or not we will agree with these lies. If we do not constantly monitor these lies, they will grow like weeds in the garden until they begin to choke out every desirable plant…or in this case, God’s truth.
Agreement gives the enemy a great deal of legal access to our lives for control, torment, and oppression. Jesus said that the truth will set us free. The corollary is that lies will keep us in bondage. Any unbelief regarding the character of God and his promises, constitutes agreement with Satan and gives the enemy a right to stay, even when commanded to leave, because we are “walking together.”
From time to time, we see demonized believers seek deliverance without success. The demon may clearly manifest or the evidence of demonization is abundant, but when commanded to leave, the spirit stays. The believer may be tormented or oppressed and sincerely wants deliverance, but nothing exits. In some cases, it is because the believer does not truly want to give up the particular sin that the demon promotes in their life. He or she wants the sin but not the consequence. Their desire to hold onto the sin is their agreement with the enemy.
At other times, we may find the believer has fallen into agreement with the enemy about God’s “indifference” toward them or his “unwillingness to answer their prayer” or that he is the one visiting sickness or torment on them. In these cases, more discipleship is often needed before deliverance can be affective. Part of our transformation comes from the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2) … which means we align our thinking with God’s truth rather than Satan’s lies. These individuals must commit to give more authority to God’s word than to their own emotions or the lies of the enemy which they may have been subjected to for decades. We always want a quick fix for those who come to us in pain and oppression, but that is not always in their best interest.
Part of our problem in the contemporary church is that we get people saved but then fail to disciple them so that they can stand against the attacks of the enemy. We fail to firmly ground them in the truths of scripture. Because of that, they continue to be double-minded people who agree with God on some things while agreeing with Satan about other things…more out of ignorance than rebellion.
The word of God is the sword of the Spirit and we have not taught God’s people how to fight. We have not taught them who they are in Jesus and have not equipped them to stand in the authority they have. When the enemy shows up, they don’t understand and when they are afflicted, they feel as if God has abandoned them or is angry with them. Just as Israel had to learn to fight to enter their promised land, we need to learn to fight to secure the promises God has given to us. God has a purpose for this conflict. Fighting and hardship makes us strong. Wise gardeners put fans in green houses because the young plants need the wind to blow against them to strengthen their stems and root systems. Otherwise, they will not survive when placed outside the greenhouse.
Agreement is a huge issue in the spiritual realm. It defines whose team you are on. All of us need to check our thinking regularly to see if we have come into agreement with Satan in any areas of our mind or behavior. If that agreement continues, it becomes an open door for the enemy. Paul commands us in 2 Corinthians 10:5 to tear down every enemy stronghold of thought within us and take every thought captive to make it obedient to Jesus. That simply means that any thoughts or beliefs bouncing around in our heads that are not aligned with the commands, perspectives, motives, and choices of Christ must be discarded. The goal of every believer should be that every thought we have, every word we speak, and every belief we hold will be totally aligned with the Word of God. Be careful about your agreement.
